As humans, we are constantly looking for excuses to justify our wrong actions. This is no different when it comes to being late. Here are some of the most common excuses for being late, and why they’re not valid.
- “I’m sorry I’m late, I got stuck in traffic.”
This is one of the most common excuses for being late. The problem with this excuse is that it’s often not true. In a study by Harvard professor Daniel Gilbert, it was found that only 18% of people who use this excuse are actually stuck in traffic. The rest are lying or exaggerating.
- “I’m sorry I’m late, my alarm didn’t go off.”
This is another common excuse for being late. The problem with this excuse is that it’s often not true either.
Table of Contents
A To Z Excuses For Being Late
Excuses That Start With A
| Asystole | Attacking Apples | Accident |
| Apathy | Aunt Died | Alarm Clock |
| Ate Bad Food | Asthma Attack | Arthritis |
| Assemblage | Alarm |
Excuses That Start With B
| Basement Flooded | Bus Accident | Bedridden |
| Baby Sick | Bored | Bus Late |
| Bathroom | Busy | Bear Attack |
| Bad Traffic |
Excuses That Start With C
| Crazy Traffic | Car Accident | Child Sick |
| Car Crash | Chores | Caught Cancer |
| Captured | Car Problems | Car Broke |
| Cold | Coma | Cat Died |
Excuses That Start With D
| Delayed | Dumb | Dinner |
| Death | Doing Homework | Dancing |
| Dentist | Distracted | Doctor Appointment |
Excuses That Start With E
| Ear Infection | Eating | Exhausted |
| Eye Hurts | Epidemic | Exercise |
| Eloped | Errands | Extra Traffic |
| Exercising | Emotions |
Excuses That Start With F
| Filthy | Felt Sick | Fell Asleep |
| Fever | Friend Died | Falling Ove |
| Forgot | Fatigued | Flat Tire |
| Flunking |
Excuses That Start With G
| Good Sleep | Got Lost | Got Sick |
| Gas Leak | Groceries | Gagging |
| Goofballs | Gambling | Ghouls |
| Gardening | Gang Fight |
Excuses That Start With H
| Held Up | Headache | Hiccups |
| Hate Work | Hernia | Hospital Visit |
| Hippies | House Fire | Heart Attack |
| Headache | Hungry |
Excuses That Start With I
| Illness | Interview | In Traffic |
| Influenza |
Excuses That Start With J
| Jousting | Joking | Jinxed |
| Jogging | Jammed | Jail |
| Just Forgot | Juiced | Jail Visit |
| Jittery |
Excuses That Start With K
| Knee Injury | Knocked Out | Kidnapped |
| Keys Lost | Kids Sick | Killer Traffic |
| Knife Fight | Karate Class |
Excuses That Start With L
| Left Late | Long Line | Late Sleep |
| Late Train | Lunch | Laziness |
| Late Bus | Long Traffic |
Excuses That Start With M
| Maternal | Makeup | Money |
| Menopause | Making Bed | Migraine |
| Menophilia | Missed Bus | Mom Called |
Excuses That Start With N
| No Gas | Noise | Not Ready |
| Not Caring | Nausea | Nap |
| No Water |
Excuses That Start With O
| Over Slept | Oil Spill | Overslept |
| Out Sick | Operation | Out Late |
Excuses That Start With P
| Plane Crash | Prison | Pregnant |
| Pain | Party | Police |
| Period Pain |
Excuses That Start With Q
| Quicksand | Queer | Quiz |
| Quit School | Quarantined | Questioning |
Excuses That Start With R
| Road Traffic | Red Lights | Reading |
| Ran Away | Rabeys | Road Closure, |
| Runs | Resurrected | Raining |
| Roadwork |
Excuses That Start With S
| Slow Traffic | Stop Sign | Sleeping |
| Snoozing | Sick | Subway |
| Slept in | Stolen Car | Snow |
Excuses That Start With T
| Tornado | Truant | Train Wreck |
| Traffic | Traffic Jam | Tardy |
| Tore Pants | Tooth Ache | Tagged |
| Tax Audit | Tizzy | Trafico |
| Time |
Excuses That Start With U
| Urinate | Unprepared | Upset |
| Unmotivated | Under Attack |
Excuses That Start With V
| Valium | Very Sleepy | Van Crash |
| Voting | Vertigo | Very Drunk |
| Viagra | Vanished |
Excuses That Start With W
| Wrong Turn | Weather | Walked |
| Wedding | Wasted | Working |
Excuses That Start With Y
| Yoga | Yeti Attack | Yard Work |
| Yellow Fever |
Excuses That Start With Z
| Zipper | Zipper Stuck | Zumba |
Top Excuses for Being Late:
- Weather
- Traffic
- Oversleeping
- Illness
20 Excuses For Being Late To School
1. I had a flat tire.
2. I got lost on my way to school.
3. I was stuck in traffic.
4. My alarm clock didn’t go off.
5. My dog ate my homework.
6. The bus I took was running late this morning.
7. I overslept by accident.
8. I had to attend a family emergency.
9. I was helping my sick parent.
10. My sister had difficulty getting ready for school this morning and I was helping her out.
11. I was waiting for a repairman to come and fix something in my house.
12. I accidentally got off at the wrong bus stop.
13. I couldn’t find my school supplies and had to buy more.
14. I was helping an elderly neighbor with something.
15. I got in an argument with a sibling that made me late getting ready for school.
16. My car broke down on the way to school.
17. The electricity went out and I had to wait for it to come back on.
18. I was stuck waiting in line at the bank.
19. The weather made my commute take longer than expected.
20. I had a doctor’s appointment and couldn’t make it to school earlier.
22 Excuses For Being Late To Work
1. Traffic – Traffic is often unpredictable and can cause unavoidable delays.
2. Car troubles – Car troubles are always a hassle, but they can be an even bigger problem when you need to make it to work on time.
3. Oversleeping – Sometimes you just hit the snooze one too many times!
4. Poor public transportation – If you rely on public transportation to get to work, delays and other issues can prevent you from arriving on time.
5. Family emergency – When a family emergency arises, it’s completely understandable that you may be late for work due to the circumstances.
6. Weather-related delays – Inclement weather can cause major roadblocks and make it impossible to get to work on time.
7. Illness – Feeling under the weather is a legitimate reason for being late, especially if you need extra time to recover before heading into the office.
8. Getting lost – If you take a new route or don’t have a good sense of direction, getting lost can cause delays in getting to work on time.
9. Lack of sleep – If you don’t get enough rest the night before, it can be hard to make it in by your scheduled start time.
10. Wardrobe malfunctions – Taking too long to pick out an outfit or experiencing a wardrobe malfunction can cause delays in getting to work on time.
11. Funeral or memorial service – If a close family member recently passed away, it’s understandable that you may be late to work due to the circumstances.
12. Difficulties waking up – Some people have difficulty getting out of bed in the morning and this can lead to being late for work.
13. Poor planning – If you don’t leave yourself enough time to get ready in the morning, it can be hard to make it in by your scheduled start time.
14. Misreading the clock – It’s easy to misread the clock and think you have more time than you actually do.
15. Unexpected detours – Unexpected detours can cause delays in getting to work on time.
16. Flat tire – If you experience a flat tire, it may be difficult to make it into work by your scheduled start time.
17. House lockout – Sometimes people forget their keys and this can delay them from making it into work on time.
18. Missing an alarm – If you forget to set your alarm or it malfunctions, this can cause delays.
19. Long lines – If there are long lines at the store, bank, or post office, this can delay you from making it into work on time.
20. Heavy traffic – Heavy traffic can also cause delays in getting to work on time.
21. Getting stuck in an elevator – If you get stuck in an elevator, this can delay your arrival to work on time.
22. Broken down public transportation – If public transportation breaks down, it can be difficult to make it into the office by time.
Excuses For Being Late A to Z – Pictures
